Transmigrated Into The Body Of The Cursed Prince Wife
Chapter 91: Stay with her

Chapter 91: Stay with her

Lucian heard Zane’s words but didn’t react as he’d expected the guests to arrive at the palace anytime soon. However, what he didn’t like was the fact that they were being ordered to move into the main palace until the celebration was over—something that had never happened before.

The Emperor or Empress had never invited him to stay in the palace for more than a day, and now that they suddenly did, he didn’t like it as he had a bad feeling about it. However, he didn’t show it in his expression as he rode with Ave to the main palace rather than return to theirs when they’d been informed to move to the main palace.

When Lucian’s horse came to a stop in front of the main palace entrance, he glanced down at the woman in front of him and realized her eyes were closed, her forehead covered in sweat, and her fingers still gripping the front of his shirt tightly.

Lucian didn’t bother to wake her up as he knew she must be suffering from one of the side effects of the snake bite, drifting in and out of consciousness while hallucinating before the effect completely disappears in hours. He slid his right hand under her knees, and the other one supported her back before he gathered her in his arms and swiftly dismounted the horse with ease.

He held her tight to him before he began to walk up the front entrance stairs of the palace, which had a red carpet on them. Judging by the hour of the night, he was certain most of the royals were already asleep or had retired to their chambers with the guests. Thus, he didn’t bother making a stop anywhere else and walked straight to the chamber they had used the last time they were in the main palace.

Lucian knew when the morning arrived, they would be questioned on why they had missed the royal dinner and the welcoming of their esteemed Banzai Kingdom guests. However, he didn’t let any of that bother him more than the woman moaning in her sleep in his arms.

When Lucian arrived at the door of the chamber, he didn’t have to use his hands to open the door; he used his powers to control it and opened it, and when he stepped inside, he used his leg to kick it closed behind him before he proceeded to the bed and gently placed her down on it. However, when he tried to move back, her fingers gripping his shirt tightened, and her brows drew together.

"Mom..." she cried out, a tear rolling down her flushed cheeks, causing Lucian to feel his chest tighten at the sight of her tears and how she was gripping him tightly. He recalled her words about not knowing her mother well enough to miss her, as she had passed away while birthing her. He knew without a doubt she was hallucinating in her dreams, where even if she were to fall asleep, it wouldn’t feel like sleep.

He had been bitten by the adult Dark Sarkun snake in camp years ago, and he had suffered for the entire night hallucinating and falling in and out of consciousness, where he would see things that made no sense.

Glancing down at the frown on her face, he knew she must be going through just that. However, when it had bitten him, there had been no one to attend to him, as he was in camp with Alden, who had told him to be a man and deal with the pain and stop groaning. He had been just seventeen then.

Raising his hand, Lucian placed his large hand against hers that was gripping his shirt and slowly untangled her fingers from around the fabric, placing her hand back by her side. And because he couldn’t help himself, he reached out his hand and moved a few strands of hair away from her sweat-covered forehead before he delicately wiped the tears off her cheeks.

Though she had the face of the woman he despised, whenever Lucian looked at her, he never saw Selene; he only saw Aveline, the mannerless woman who annoyed him more than anyone had ever before and got under his skin all the time. A woman whose real face he didn’t know, but whenever he looked into her light blue eyes, it was like he could see the real her.

Lucian knew he shouldn’t allow himself to get attached to her or let his body control him into wanting her, but he couldn’t help the bond he had been feeling towards her lately. He didn’t like it, but he couldn’t control it. And her blood...

It was the most delicious thing he had ever tasted in all of his life, the most addictive scent and taste, and he would give anything to have a taste again. Her scent, her eyes, her blood, and her body were going to be the death of him if he didn’t try to stop this attachment and attraction forming between them before it went out of his hands.

Lucian stared at her for a few more minutes before he moved away from her and stood straighter. Turning around, he walked into the adjoining bathing room in the chamber and came back with a towel and a bowl of water in hand.

Placing the bowl on the nightstand, he sat down at the edge of the bed and soaked the towel in the water, squeezing it before he gently began to wipe off the sweat on her forehead and face. Then he slowly made his way down her neck and the front of her chest, where his hand stilled for a moment at the swell of her breasts before he went back up to her face to wipe it off.

Lucian repeated the action a few more times until he saw her temperature was getting back to normal. Then he put the towel and bowl away on one side. He stood up and turned back towards her legs.

He slowly raised her dress to expose the snake bite on her thigh. The spot had darkened a bit from the dried blood around it. He used his finger to trace the bite marks—not from the snake’s but his fangs—after when he’d gotten a taste of her blood in his mouth at first and couldn’t stop himself the second time and took a bite. Looking at the mark now and the dried blood, he felt his throat go dry and itchy as another urge to bite her rose in him.

A deep frown settled on his face, as he’d never had any urge to drink or have blood before until now. Though he didn’t even know what sort of creature he was cursed to turn into every full moon night, he had accepted that part of himself. However, he didn’t quite like that he was feeling another urge to bite Ave and taste her warm blood on his tongue and dry throat.

"You are going to be a hard one to ignore if this continues," he muttered to himself as he immediately pulled down her dress in frustration. He walked up to her and adjusted her pillow, but when he moved to back away, she turned and grabbed his hand tightly.

Looking down, Lucian was met with her tear-filled eyes that looked at him in sorrow and another emotion he couldn’t quite place. "Don’t leave me... Mom... I miss you so much. Don’t go, please..." she cried out, with a silent sob escaping her lips, tears streaming down her face.

Lucian felt his heart ache just by seeing that wetness on her face. Gritting his teeth, he ordered, "Stop crying," but to his dismay, his words only made her cry out even more to the point her shoulders were trembling.

"Don’t go... hold me for a while at least. Please, mom." She cried, causing Lucian to sigh in dismay as he knew this must be part of the hallucination he had spoken of. The silly woman had said she didn’t miss her mom, but the side effects of the snake bite were indeed bringing out her true feelings toward her deceased mother.

Not liking how she was crying and looking at him with such sorrowful blue eyes he was used to seeing them hold mischief and scorn, he turned back to the bed and kicked off his shoes before he climbed up and lay down beside her. To his surprise, she turned into his arms and wrapped her arm around his waist, her head buried in his chest as she continued to sob, her tears soaking into his shirt and causing his chest to feel further discomfort.

"I am here, why are you still crying?" he asked, his chin tilted down to look at her, but even if she heard him, she didn’t respond and only cried harder. Not knowing what to do, as he’d never been in a situation where a woman was crying, he hesitantly reached out his hand and began to gently stroke her back in a coaxing motion.

"It’s all right, the hallucination will only last for a few hours. You’ll be fine after that," he assured in a whisper as her sobs began to subside and her cries died down. A few minutes later, she was completely silent in his embrace, but she moved even closer into his arms as if seeking comfort from him, and he didn’t push her away, offering her the comfort she sought from his hold.

As Lucian continued to stroke her back, even after she’d stopped crying, his thoughts wandered as he recalled their time outside the palace walls. He had never felt welcomed in his own homeland before, like he felt when Ave made him sit in that village, watching as the people went on with their lives despite barely having anything.

He had blamed them many times and wanted nothing but to kill them all, but today he realized, sometimes, it was best to look at things from a different point of view before you judge or think you were the only victim.

Sighing, he allowed himself to relax on the bed with Ave’s arm wrapped tightly around his waist, and before he knew it himself, he was slowly drifting off into slumber. Not long after, his hand still on her back, he fell asleep, both of them wrapped up together.